Receptacle discharge cap



May 5, 1942.

H. w. RUEGER RECEPTACLE DISCHARGE CAP Filed Dec. 9, 1939 HEIPM/M/ m170565,

Patented May 5, 1942 UNITED STATES PATET OFFEQE RECEPTACLE DISCHARGE CAPHerman W. Rueger, Lancaster, Pa., assignor to Liberty Can and SignCompany, a corporation of Pennsylvania Application December 9, 1939,Serial No. 308,469

9 Claims.

This invention relates to receptacle discharge receptacle contentstherethrough; to provide such a closure which is so constructed as topermit the eflicient use therein of the-largest possible dispensingapertures with respect to its diameter and which is particularly adaptedfor use in its large diameter sizes, although. it is equally emcient inits smaller diameter sizes; to provide-in such a closure a novel form ofunobtrusive stop means which acts positively and efiiciently to preventrelative rotation past a certain point in either direction between theinner and outer closure members; to provide stop means. whichmay. be soformed and disposed during manufacture as to allow any-desired. amountof relative rotation, short of a complete revolution,.between said innerand outer members; to provide such stop means which serve to strengthenand bracethe inner member andmay also serve as bearing means fortheouter member; and 'to provide such a. closure which, in-addition to-theabove pointedout features and advantages, is of extremely neat preferredembodiment of the invention applied to a receptacle;

Figure 2, a top-planview of the invention;

'centric relation about the skirt 6.

letter A designates any usual form of receptacle provided with apreferably slightly conical neck or portion B at itsupper end on whichthe'closure of my invention may be mounted or applied.

The receptacle closure of the invention comprises an inner stationarycap designated 2 in its entirety, and an outer cap, designated l in itsentirety, rotatably mounted on said inner cap 2. Both of said caps I and2 are formed of preferably resilient sheet metal or other material.

The inner cap or member 2 comprises an ec-v centrically aperturedcircular topi-preferably of curved or arcuate cross-section, although itmay.

be flat or of some other suitable shape an annular preferably integralskirt or portion 6 depending downwardly from the periphery of said top 4and preferably being of slightly conical shape to be pressed down overand frictionally maintained in position on the preferably conicaldispensing neck B or other suitable portion of a receptacle A; apreferably integral rim or flange 8 extending radially outwardly fromthe lower portion of said skirt 6; and a preferably integral annularshell l4 projecting upwardly from the periphery of said rim 8 anddisposed in radially spaced con- Preferably the shell I 4 consists of ahigh-walled segment l2 and a low-walled segment 16, the opposite endedges of the high-walled shell segment [2 at its respective points'ofjuncture with said low-walled segment l6 being disposed preferably in anaxialdirection and perpendicular to the upper edges I8 and 20respectively of said high-walled and low-walled shell segments I2 andI6; However,

although the low-wallecl-shellsegment I6 is de sirable and, togetherwith segment I2, serves to Figure 3, a view similar to Figure 2, butwith f the top of the outer cap removed;

Figure 4, an exploded perspective view of the preferred embodiment ofthe invention shown in Fi ure 1;-

Figure 5, a section along the line 5-5 of Figure 2, looking in thedirection of the arrows;

Figure 6, a top plan view of a slightly modified form of the invention;

Figure 7, a fragmentary axial section of the modificationshown in Figure6; and,

Figure 8, a fragmentary sectional view of the outer cap or-memberillustrating a slightly modifiedform of stop formed therein.

Referring now inv detail to the drawing, the

strengthen and maintain the rigidity of the inner cap 2, in addition toserving as a convenient bearing surface for the skirt 1 of outer cap I,it is to be understood that shell segment I6 is not essential and may beomitted if desired, it being essential only to provide the high-walledsegment l2 or its equivalent having stop means or shoulders ID tocooperate with'the stop lug or member 9 of outer cap l,as more fullyhereinafter described.

The outer cap ,1 comprises an eccentrically apertured' top 5corresponding in shape to the inner cap top 4 and adapted to have itslower face conformingly slidably frictionally engage the upbeen placedin outer cap I, by spinning or turning over the lower edge portion ofskirt 1 to lie in resilient engagement against the lower face of rim 8.In Figure 4 the cap I is shown prior to assembly on inner cap 2 andbefore forming the flange II. I

It may be seen that in the assembled condition of the preferred forms ofclosure caps I and 2 the radially inwardly disposed stop or stop lug 9of outer cap I is disposed for rotation in a path or are just above theupper edge of shell segment I6 between the stop shoulders III of innercap 2; and the stop lug 9, the'shell I4, and the varying sizes may beapplied to the inner and outer caps 2 and I respectively in accordancewith usual well known practices.

For instance it may be desirable to provide a plurality of small shakeropenings or perforations in said caps I and 2 adapted to be rotated intoand out of registry, as in the modified form of closure shown in Figures6 and '7, or a plurality of such small shaker openings or perforationsmay be formed in the outer cap I in addition to a the spoon opening 2Ithereof so that either said dispensing openings 2I and 22 respectivelyof said caps I and 2 are so proportioned and positioned that the stoplug 9 engages one of the stop shoulders II) when rotatedto a positionwhere the dispensing openings 2| and 22 are in registry in the opencondition of the closure, and engages the other of said stop shouldersI0 when the outer cap I has been rotated in the other direction toclosed position wherein the apertures 2I and 22 are entirely out ofregistry. Obviously the proportions of shell segment I2 may be changedor formed as desired to allow either a small or a 1 very large amount ofrelative rotation between the inner and outer caps 2 and I of theclosure, the permissible amount of relative rotation decreasing as thehigh-walled segment I2 is formed to occupy a greater proportion of theperipheral or circumferential portion of rim 8.

The stop or stop lug 9 may be in any of a number of forms so long as itis properly located and of sufiicient strength.

One form of stop lug 9 which I find to be particularly well adapted foruse in my preferred form of closure, and as clearly shown in Figures 1and 4, comprises an indentation 9 formed with a radially inwardlyextending bottom panel 9 a substantially axially disposed side panel 9*,and substantially radially axially disposed end Walls 9 adapted toengage the respective stop shoulders II].

In the slightly modified form of stop lug 99,

shown in Figure 8, the structure is the same as' hereinbefore describedexcept that the end walls 9 of the above described form of stop 9 areomitted, and the stop 90 is joined to the outer cap I only along theedges 99 of the panels 99 and 90 so that the end edges of the bottompanel 90 are adapted to engage the respective stop shoulders ID atsubstantially right angles so that the stop shoulders I0 and end edgesof panel 99 respectively will in operation bite into each other therebypreventing said stop shoulders I0 from bending and sliding around thestop lug 90 under the application of excessive force such as might becarelessly applied when opening or closing the closure or discharge capin haste.

The dispensing apertures 2i and 22 respectively of the preferred form ofclosure are shown, simply by way of illustration, as being in the formof spoon openings of relatively large size, however it is thought to beobvious that various types of dispensing apertures or perforations ofspoon opening 2| or said shaker perforations 'may be selectively rotatedinto registry with the opening 22 of the inner cap 2, as shown in Patent766,091 to Woods.

Or, if desired, one of the closure caps, preferably the inner cap 2, maybe provided with deep score lines or weakened portions defining thedispensing aperture, as shown in the patent to Lagois, 1, 515,124, sothat the receptacle to which the closure is applied may remain sealeduntil the user forms the aperture by punching out or removing thematerial enclosed Within or bounded by said score lines, or it may bedesired to use sealing means in the form of a paper or other suitablematerial disc disposed between the caps or cap tops 4 and 5, asdisclosed in the patent to West 844,640.

Where large spoon openings or apertures such as 2I and 22 are providedin the closure caps I and 2 it may be desirable in some cases to sodispose said openings that in the closed position of the closure theadjacent edges of said apertures 2| and 22 will bespaced apart asubstantial disprevent such sifting even when the respectivedispensingapertures 2I and 22 are very closely spaced in the closed condition ofthe closure.

It is thought to be apparent from the foregoing that when it is desiredto dispense the contents of the container or receptacle A, the outer capI may be rotated until the respective dispensing apertures 2| and 22 arein registry at which time the stop 9 will engage the stop shoulder I9 ofthe inner cap 2 to prevent further rotation, and to close the containerclosure it is necessary only to, rotate the outer cap I in the reversedirection until the stop 9 again contacts one of the stop shoulders I0and the dispensing apertures ZI and 22 are entirely out of registry.

In the modified form of the invention shown in Figures 6 and 7 theconstruction and operation are the same as in the preferred form of theinvention except that the proportions of the parts have been changed toshow how the invention may be embodied in a small diameter closureadapted to fit over a small diameter neck or portion B of a receptacle Aand wherein only a small amount of rotation of the outer closure cap I99is necessary to move the inner and outer cap shaker perforations 229 and2I9 respectively into and out of registry.

To this end the highwalled shell segment I29 extends almost entirelyaround the periphery of the inner cap 209 to permit only a small amountof movement of the stop lug 909 between the stop shoulders I009 of saidshell segment I 20. Also, since in the smaller diameter caps it isdiflicult to spin or'turn up a very high shell I29 without splitting ordamaging the same, the upperedge of shell segment L20 :liessubstantiallybelowithe top of the=outer cap I130 of this modified form,and the stop "lug ilflfl :of thisform .is in'the form of a deep inwardlyextending U-cross section indentation extending downwardly for rotarymovement tbetween the adjacent stop shoulders IMO.

I claim:

1. A:two piece iunitary receptacle closure comprising an :inner cap, incombination with an outer cap rotatably-mounted onsaid inner cap,said-inner 'cap comprising an eccentrically apertured circular .top ofcurved cross-section, a slightly conical depending-skirt integral'withsaid top and adapted to be frictionally pressed andmaintained-in'position on the dispensing-neck of a receptacle, anintegral rim extending radially outwardly from thezbottom of said skirt,andran integral annular shell projecting upwardly from the outer marginof said rim, said shell comprising a low-walled segment and ahigh-walled segment, the opposite end edges of said highwalled segmentbeing disposed in an axial direction to form abrupt stop shoulders, andsaid outer cap comprising an eccentrically apertured top conforming inshape to the top of said inner cap and disposed in rotary slidingfrictional engagement thereon, an annular skirt depending from said topand rotatably journalled about the shell of said inner cap, a radiallyinwardly extending flange carried by said skirt in resilient slidingengagement with the rim of said inner cap to maintain the top of saidinner cap in resilient frictional engagement with the top of said outercap, and a radially inwardly extending stop lug formed in said outer capto engage the stop shoulders of said inner cap, said stop lug, saidinner cap shell, and the respective dispensing openings of said caps,all being so proportioned and positioned that in the assembled operativecondition of the closure said stop lug is disposed for rotation abovethe upper edge of the lowwalled shell segment to engage the stopshoulders of said high-walled shell segment in the open and closedconditions of said closure.

2. A two piece unitary receptacle closure comprising an inner cap havingan eccentrically apere tured top of curved cross-section, a dependingskirt integral with said top, an integral rim extending radiallyoutwardly from the bottom of said skirt, and an integral annular shellprojecting upwardly from the outer margin of said rim, said shellcomprising a low-walled segment, and

a high walled segment formed with substantially axially disposedend-edges, in combination with an outer cap rotatably mounted on saidinner cap comprising an eccentrically apertured top conforming in shapeto the top of said inner cap and disposed in rotary sliding frictionalengagement thereon, an annular skirt depending from said top androtatably journalled about the shell of said inner cap, a radiallyinwardly extending flange carried by said skirt in resilient slidingengagement with the rim of said inner cap, and a radially inwardlyextending stop lug formed in said outer cap and disposed above the upperedge of said low-walled shell segment for rotation between the end edgesof said high-walled shell segment to engage one of said edges in therespective open and closed positions of said closure.

3. A two piece unitary receptacle closure comprising an inner cap havingan eccentrically apertured top, a depending skirt integral with saidtop, anin'tegral rim extending radially outwardly from :the t-bottom'ofsaidskirt, and anintegral annular shell projecting upwardly from theouter margin :of-said' rim, said shell comprising a lowwalled segment,and a high walled segment formed with substantially axially extendingend edges,'in combination with an outercap rotatably mounted on saidinner cap comprising an-eccentrically apertured top disposed in rotarysliding frictional engagement on said inner cap, anannularskirtdepending from saidtop below the rim of said inner cap, a radiallyinwardly extending flange carried by said skirt in resilient slidingengagement with the rim of said-innercap, and a radiallyinwardlylextendingstop lug formed in said outer cap and disposed abovethe upper edge of said low-walled :shell segment for rotation between:the .end edges of said high walled shell segment, to engage one of saidedges in the respective open and closed conditions of said closure.

4. 'A receptacle closure comprising an inner cap having an eccentricallyapertured :top, .a skirt depending from said top, a rim extendingradially outwardly from the bottom of said skirt, and a shell projectingupwardly from said rim, said shell comprising a low-walled segment, anda high-walled segment having abrupt end edges, in combination with anouter cap rotatably mounted on said inner cap comprising aneccentrically apertured top disposed in rotary sliding frictionalengagement on said inner cap, an annular skirt depending from said topabout said inner cap, a radially inwardly extending flange carried bysaid skirt in resilient sliding engagement with the rim of said innercap, and a radially inwardly extending stop lug formed in said outer capand disposed above the upper edge of said low-walled shell segment forrotation between the end edges of said high-walled segment, to engageone of said edges in the respective open and closed conditions of saidclosure.

5. A receptacle closure comprising an inner cap having an eccentricallyapertured top, a skirt depending from said top, a rim extending radiallyoutwardly from the bottom of said skirt, and a shell segment projectingupwardly from said rim and having abrupt axially extending end edges, incombination with an outer cap rotatably mounted on said inner capcomprising an eccentrically apertured top disposed in rotary slidingfrictional engagement on said inner cap top, a skirt depending from saidtop about said inner cap, a radially inwardly extending flange carriedby said skirt in resilient sliding engagement with the rim of said innercap, and a stop lug formed in said outer cap and disposed for rotationbetween the end edges of said shell segment.

6. A receptacle closure comprising an inner cap having an eccentricallyapertured top, a skirt depending from said top, a rim extending radiallyoutwardly from the bottom of said skirt, and a shell segment projectingupwardly from said rim and having abrupt substantially axially extendingend edges, in combination with an outer cap rotatably mounted on saidinner cap comprising an eccentrically apertured top disposed in rotarysliding engagement on said inner cap top,- a skirt depending from saidtop, a radially inwardly extending flange carried by said skirt inengagement with the rim of said inner cap, and stop means formed in saidouter cap and disposed for rotation between the end edges of said shellsegment.

7. A receptacle closure comprising an inner cap having an eccentricallyapertured top, a skirt depending from said top, and an upwardlyprojecting shell segment attached in radially outwardly spaced relationto said skirt and having circumferentially opposed substantially axiallyextending end-edges, in combination with an outer cap rotatably mountedon said inner cap com prising an eccentrically apertured top disposed inrotary sliding engagement on said inner cap top, a skirt depending fromsaid top, a flange carried by said skirt in engagement with the rim ofsaid inner cap, and stop means formed in said outer cap and disposed forrotation between the end edges of said shell segment.

8. A receptacle closure comprising an inner cap having an eccentricallyapertured top, a skirt depending from said top, and an upwardlyprojecting shell segment attached in radially outwardly spacedrelationship to said skirt, and having circumferentially opposedsubstantially axially extending end edges, in combination with an outercap rotatably mounted-on said inner cap comprising an eccentricallyapertured top disposed in rotary sliding engagement on said inner captop, a skirt depending from said top, means carried by said outer capfor maintaining said outer and inner cap tops in slidable frictionalengagement, and stop means carried by said outer cap top and disposedfor rotation between the end edges of said shell segment.

9. A receptacle closure comprising an inner cap having a top, aneccentrically apertured skirt depending from said top, and a shell seg-'

